This video is about the respiratory protection training
requirements for any worker who is required to wear a respirator. The
federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration - also called "OSHA"
- and State OSHA Agencies require employers to provide free respiratory
protection training to workers who wear respirators on the job.

This video provides a brief overview and general information
about respiratory protection training requirements. It does not cover
all of the training required under federal OSHA or State OSHA respiratory
protection standards. This video can be a part of the OSHA-required respiratory
protection training, which includes many topics, like how to put on and
take off a respirator and how to use, clean, and maintain your respirator.
Your employer must also provide you with worksite-specific training.

While this video discusses some of your employer's training
responsibilities under OSHA's respiratory protection standard, it is important
to remember that the purpose of a respirator is to protect your health
and safety.

A respirator can't protect you if you don't know how
to use it properly. In addition, there is other important information
that you must know about your respirator. Therefore, your employer must
provide you with respirator training before you use a respirator on the
job.

This training must be presented in a way that you can
understand and must include at least the following information:

Why you need to use the respirator;

What the respirator can and cannot do to protect you;

How to properly inspect, put on and take off, and use your respirator;

How to check the seal of your respirator (also called a "user seal
check");

How to use the respirator effectively in emergency situations, including
situations in which the respirator doesn't work properly;

How to recognize medical signs and symptoms that may limit or prevent
you from using a respirator;

What the procedures are for maintenance and storage of the respirator;
and

What the requirements are for federal OSHA's or your State OSHA's
Respiratory Protection Standards.

You should ask questions if you do not understand the
information that is being provided to you.

Basic training can be provided by an outside party, including a union,
a contractor's association, or a past employer. However, it is still your
current employer's responsibility to provide worksite-specific training
and to ensure that you can demonstrate the knowledge to safely and correctly
use your respirator.

You must be trained before you use a respirator, but
this is not the only time that training is required.

If you use a respirator at work, you must be trained
at least every 12 months. This annual retraining will refresh your memory
on the information and skills you need to use a respirator correctly.
It gives you a chance to practice with a respirator and to ask questions
and discuss worksite-specific respirator use with your instructor.

OSHA requires additional retraining when:

Changes in your workplace or the type of respirator
you use make your previous training out-of-date. For example,

You get a new work assignment that has different respiratory hazards
and respirator requirements from your old job; or

You can't remember the information and skills you need to properly
use your respirator. This could occur when you use a respirator only
a few times a year; or

A situation comes up in which retraining is necessary to ensure safe
respirator use. For example, your supervisor sees that you're not using
your respirator properly.

Learning and remembering the knowledge and skills you
need to use your respirator correctly will help ensure that your respirator
protects you.

You do not have to go through basic respirator training
every time you change jobs. Your current employer is permitted to accept
basic respirator training that you have received from an outside party
within the last 12 months. This is known as "training portability."
For example, the training could have been provided by a union, an apprenticeship
program, a contractor's association, a past employer, or another current
employer. This means that your respirator training can "follow" you from
employer to employer, as long as you can demonstrate the knowledge and
skills you need to use a respirator correctly. In this case, your employer
may only be required to train you on the skills and knowledge that you
cannot demonstrate. In addition, your employer must train you on the site-specific
hazards, policies and procedures, and any other information you will need
to safely and properly use your respirator.

Your current employer or an outside party must retrain
you in all of the training elements no later than 12 months from the date
of your previous training.

This video has provided you with a brief overview of
OSHA's respiratory protection training requirements. There are many other
things that you must know and do before you can safely use a respirator
in a hazardous work environment. While this video may be a part of your
respiratory protection training, your employer must also provide you with
additional training on respirators, including worksite-specific training.
Remember, if you don't know if a respirator is needed for the task you
will be doing, or if you are unsure about how to properly use a respirator
or which filter or cartridge to use, talk to your supervisor before entering
the hazardous area.

For more information about respirator use in your workplace,
refer to these OSHA and NIOSH websites. You will find OSHA's respiratory
protection standard, additional respirator training videos, and other
guidance material to help you work safely.